Aromatic Lemon & Lavender Chicken

One of my favorite cookbooks is The Little Paris Kitchen, by English chef Rachel Khoo. I was originally introduced to Rachel’s modernized French recipes when watching her cooking series on BBC. A really entertaining series for all Paris and French food lovers!

If you love the scent of lavender like me, you might want to try out one of Rachel’s recipes. Poulet au citron et lavande, lemon and lavender chicken, is a dish I cooked after returning from France one time with some fresh lavender. One might think using lavender in cooking is a bit risky, but if you don’t overdo the amount, I guarantee you will have a juicy and aromatic result. And it will not taste like soap one bit!

Poulet au citron et lavande, by Rachel Khoo

Ingredients

1 chicken, jointed into 6-8 pieces

a generous pinch of salt

For the marinade

2 tablespoons dried lavender

4 tablespoons olive oil

4 tablespoons lavender honey or plain runny honey

2 sprigs of fresh thyme (I used dried thyme)

finely grated zest and juice of 1 unwaxed lemon

Instructions

For the marinade, crush the lavender and put it in a bowl, mix together with the oil, thyme, lemon zest and juice. Place the chicken pieces in the bowl or a separate container, and pour the marinade over. Cover and leave to marinate for 30 minutes (or up to 4 hours).

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius. Put the chicken and marinade in a roasting tin and sprinkle with generous pinch of salt. Roast for 45 minutes, turning the pieces halfway. You will know the chicken is done if you pierce the thickest part of the flesh with a skewer – the juices should run clear, not red or pink.

I served the chicken with some green salad with figs and walnuts. The juices are perfect for dipping bread, so keep them in the dish when you serve the chicken.